Machine for coiling wire.



No.802f712. PATENTED OCT. 24, 1906. G. H. SGOTT & G. E. BIGELOW.

MAGHINE FOR GOILING WIRE.

APPLICATION FILED 33.19. 1904.

m m m lg Figq m M U l, I JC F198 BQOTQZEEZQW Wdnesses BeQT'ge 5K No.802,712. PATENTED OGT. 24, 1905. G. H. SUOTT & G. E. BIGELOW. MACHINEFOR COILING WIRE.

APPLIUATION FILED FEB. 19' 1904.

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GEORGE H. SCOTT AND GEORGE E. BIGELOW, OF WORCESTER, MASSA- CHUSETTS,ASSIGNORS TO MORGAN SPRING COMPANY, OF WORCES- TER, MASSACHUSETTS, ACORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR COILING WIRE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 24, 1905.

Application filed February 19, 1904. Serial No. 194,336.

To It whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that we, GEORGE H. Score: and GEORGE E. BIGELOW, citizens ofthe United States, residing at Worcester, in the county of Vorcester andCommonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Machines for Coiling W'ire, of which the following is aspecification, accompanied by drawings forming a part of the same, inwhieh- Figure 1 represents a front elevation of a wire-coiling machineembodying our invention. Fig. 2 is an end view of the same. Fig. 3 is atop view. Fig. A is a sectional view of a portion of the machine, takenon the plane of the broken line 3 3, Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 5 is a detachedVW' of the mechanism for adjusting the pressure-roll by whichthe wire tobe coiled is held against a rotatable arbor, said mechanism being shownin vertical central sectional view; and Fig. 6 represents the mechanismfor raising and lowering the bending-roll relatively to the rotatablearbor. Fig. 7 is a sectional view on line 7 7, Fig. 5. Fig. 8 representsa closely-coiled spiral spring. Fig. 9 represents a coiled spring withopen coils, and Fig. 10 shows the end of the arbor with its axisadjusted at an oblique angle to the line of movement of the wire.

Similar reference-figures refer to similar parts in the different views.

Our present invention relates to a wire-coiling machine for themanufacture of coiledwire springs and comprising one or more pairs ofrotating feed-rolls by which the wire is continuously fed forward and anarbor around which the wire is wound spirally to form a spring; and ourinvention has for its objects to provide a rotatable arbor theperipheral movement of which exactly corresponds with the feedingmovement of the wire, to provide means for severing a continuous stripof wire to produce springs of a predetermined length, to provide meansfor the adjustment of the axis of the rotatable arbor relatively to theline of movement of the wire as it is fed thereto, to provide means forthe adjustment of the wire-coiling mechanism relatively to thefeedrolls, to provide means for raising or lowering the bending-rollrelatively to the plane of the rotatable arbor, to provide means forvarying the axis of the bending-roll relatively to the axis of the arborin correspondence with the desired pitch of the spring, and to providemeans for the more convenient adjustment of the pressure and bendingrolls relatively to the arbor, and we accomplish these objects, togetherwith others, as hereinafter pointed out, by the construction andarrangement of parts as hereinafter described, and set forth in theannexed claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, 1 denotes a table supporting anupright framework 2, in which are journaled feed-rolls 3, arranged inpairs and positively rotated by a geared connection with a driving-shaft4, carrying a belt-pulley 5, having a clutch eonnection 6 with thedriving-shaft of any suitable and known form of construction. Thefeed-rolls 3 are provided with circumferential grooves 7, adapted toengage acontinuous piece of wire 8 and feed the same forward in thedirection of the arrow 9 to an arbor 10, around the end of which thewire is coiled to form a spiral wire-spring, such as that shown at 11,Fig. 8, when the coils are wound closely together, or, as shown at 12,Fig. 9, with the coils wound some distance apart.

The arbor is formed of two sections 14k and 15, having a screw-threadedconnection. The section 1 1 is provided with a tapered surface 16,fitting a correspondingly-tapered surface in a rotatable sleeve 17. Thesection 15 is provided with a shoulder 18, hearing against the end ofthe sleeve 17, so that as the section 15 is screwed into the section 14:the latter will become fixed within the rotatable sleeve 17. Therotatable sleeve 17 is journaled within a sleeve 19, having aninterposed series of antifriction-balls 20 between the sleeves 17 and19. The sleeve 19 is held in a fixed position in a bearing 21, whichforms part of an adjustable block 22, Fig. 1, held in ways 23 in avertical post 24: and vertically adjustable therein by anadjusting-serew 25, by which the arbor 10 can be raised or loweredrelatively to the feed-rolls 3, so that the wire may be fed either aboveor below the arbor as the spring to be wound is either right or lefthand.

The block 22 is provided at its lower end with a clamp-bearing26, whichmaybe tightened by a bolt 27, and the upper end of the block 22 has asimilar clamp-bearing28, which is tightened by a bolt 29. The bearings26 and 28 are adapted to receive a stem 30, Fig.

5, upon which is supported a pressure-roll 31, adapted to bear againstthe Wire and hold the same in contact with the arbor 10. In Figs. 1, 2,and 3the pressure-roll 31 is placed above the arbor 10 and the stem 30is represented as being held in the clamp-bearing 28; but if the arbor10 is raised so as to receive the wire upon its under side thepressure-roll 31 would then be held on the under side of the arbor andthe stem 30 would be inserted in the clamp-bearing 26. The pressure-roll31 is journaled upon a stud 32, which is held in a cylindrical block 33,capable of being vertically adjusted in the head 34 of the stem 30 bymeans of an adjusting-screw 35, havinga geared connection witha spindle36, journaled in the head 34 and provided with a hand-wheel 37, therebyenabling the pressure-roll 31 to be vertically adjusted relatively tothe arbor 10 in order to impart suflicient pressure to the wire to holdit firmly in contact with the arbor. The block 33 is also capableofbeing turned about its own axis within the head 34 in order to adjustthe plane of the pressureroll 31 relatively to the axis of the arbor 10to correspond with the pitch of the spring to be wound. \Vhen. thepressure-roll is thus adjusted, the block 33 is held from rotating bymeans of a clamping-ring 38, which is clamped against a sleeve 39,connected by a spline with the block 33, thereby enabling the block 33to be held against rotation, but at the same time al low it to bevertically adjusted. The clamping-ring 38 is operated by aclamping-screw 41. The vertical post 24 is also provided with ways 42for a vertically-adjustable block 43, which is vertically adjustable onthe post 24 by means of an adjusting-screw 44. The vertically-adjustableblock 43 carries a T-shaped casting composed of a stem 45 and a head 46.The stem 45 is held in the block 43 and is capable of being slightlyrocked by hand in the block 43 and also of a longitudinal movement as itis actuated by an adj Listing-screw 47. In the head 46 is a cylindricalbar 48, carrying at one end a stud 49, on which is journaled a groovedbending-roll 50, adapted to press against the wire after it passesbetween the arbor and the pressure-roll 31 and bend the wire around thearbor. The inner end of the cylindrical bar 48 enter a sleeve 51 and isconnected therewith by a spline 52. The sleeve 51 is provided with aneck 53, which extends through a plate 54, bolted to one end of the head46, and provided with an external screw-thread having a nut 55, by

which the sleeve 51 may be clamped against the plate 54 and frictionallyheld from rotating. The cylindrical bar 48 is capable of a longitudinalmovement as actuated by a screw 56 in order to enable the groovedbendingroll to be adjusted toward or away from the arbor 10. Theadjusting-screw 56 has a geared connection with a shaft 57, providedwith a hand-wheel 58, and the ad justing-screw 47 has likewise a gearedconnection with a shaft 59, provided with a hand-wheel 60, saidhand-wheels 58 and 60 being located at the front of the machine and in aposition to be conveniently operated by an attendant standing in frontof the rotatable arbor 10.

The post 24 is mounted upon the table 1 and is swiveled upon a long bolt61, which passes through a cap-piece 62, extending over the top of thepost 24, and is screwed at its lower end into the table 1. The upper endof the bolt 61 carries a nut 63. The post 24 is also provided with afoot 64, resting on the table 1 and capable of being clamped to thetable by a bolt 65, extending through a slot in the foot and enteringthe table 1. By loosening the bolt 65 and the nut 63 the post 24 may berotated slightly around the long bolt 61 in order to vary the axis ofthe rotatable arbor l0 relatively to the line of movement of the wire asit is being fed to the arbor through the feed-rolls 3, so that the lineof movement of the wire will form an angle other than a right angle withthe axis of the arbor and approximating the desired pitch of the springor the angle which is formed by the successive coils of the spring andthe axis of the arbor, as illustrated in Fig. 10.

In beginning the operation of coiling a spring the end of the wire fedthrough the rolls 3 is entered between the arbor 10 and thepressure-roll 31, andthe end is bent clown- Ward to cause it to passbetween the arbor 10 and the bending-roll 50, and to accomplish this thebending-roll is raised by rocking or swinging the T-shaped casting,carrying the bending-roll in its bearing in the block 43, and this isaccomplished by connecting one end of the head 46, by means of a link66, with a crank-pin 67, carried on a plate 68, which may be rotated ona stud 69 by a handle 70. The upward movement of the bending-roll 50 islimited by the contact of a shoulder 71 with a fixed stud 752, and thedownward movement of the bending-roll 50 is limited by the contact ofthe link 66 with one side of the stud 69. The bending-roll 50 is alsocapable of adjustment by the rotation of the cylindrical bar 48 aboutits own axis in the head 46, and this is accomplished by inserting aspanner in a hole 73, Fig. 1, of the bar 48 after the clamping-nut 55has been loosened and slightly rotating the bar 48 to its desiredposition, which may be determined by the position of a gage-mark 74 onthe bar 48 relatively to the graduate-marks 75 on the end of the head46, Fig. 6.v

Supported on the front side of the frame 2 is a bar 76, having its upperend pointed to form a cutting edge 77, and above the cutting edge 77 ismounted a vertically-sliding bar 78, having a similar cutting edge 79 inthe plane of the cutting edge 77, and as the wire is fed between therolls 3 it passes between the cutting edges 7 '7 and 79. Whenever it isdesired to sever the wire, the bar 78, which is normally held in itshighest position by a spiral spring 80, is forced downwardly by acam-plate 81, pivoted on a stud 82 and having an eccentric slot 83,inclosing a stud 84, carried by the bar 78. The plate 81 is rocked by alever-handle 85 with sufficient force to bring the cutting edges 7 7 and7 9 against the opposite sides of the wire and produce nicks, so thatwhen the nicked portion of the wire reaches the arbor 10 and is bent bythe action of the roll 50 it will break apart. The handwheel 25, whichis shown upon the top of the adjusting-screw 25, is removable therefrpmand may be transferred to the rectangular shank of the adjusting-screw IL, so that one handwheel may be utilized to actuate either one of theadjusting-screws 25 or l i, and the adjustingscrews 25 and 44 passthrough slots 86 and 87 in the cap 62, said slots being curvedconcentrically with the axis of the long bolt 61.

What we claim as our invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

1. In a wire-coiling machine, the combination with a rotatable arbor, ofmeans for feeding the wire longitudinally to said arbor, means forholding the wire against the surface of said arbor, and means forvarying the axis of said arbor relatively to the axis of the wire fedthereto, substantially as described.

2. In a wire-coiling machine, the combination with means for feeding thewire to an arbor, of an arbor, means for holding the wire against thesurface of the arbor, and. means for varying the axis of the arborrelatively to the axis of the wire fed thereto, substantially asdescribed.

3. In a wire-coiling machine, the combination with a bearing, of asleeve journaled therein, a series of antifriction-balls between saidsleeve and said bearing, and a removable arbor non-rotatably held insaid sleeve, and means for feeding wire to said arbor.

4. In a wire-coiling machine, the combination with a pair of feed-rollsfor feeding the wire to an arbor, of a post having vertical ways, ablock adjustable along said ways, and an. arbor carried by said block,substantially as described.

5. In a wire-coiling machine, the combination of a supporting-table,feed-rolls mounted thereon, a post supported on said table and providedwith vertical ways, Wire-coiling mechanism supported on said post andvertically adjustable thereon, substantially as described.

6. In a wire-coiling machine, the combination with means for feeding thewire to a coiling mechanism, of a wire-coiling mechanism comprising anarbor, a supporting-post for said wire-coiling mechanism, said postbeing capable of a rotating movement,whereby the axis of said arbor isvaried, substantially as described.

7. I11 a wire-coiling machine, the combination with an arbor on whichthe wire is coiled, of a bending-roll, means for adjusting said roll ina line parallel with the axis of the arbor, means for adjusting saidroll toward and away from said arbor, said adjusting mechanismcomprising a pair of adjustingscrews, a pair of actuating-shafts havinggear connection with said screws, and handwheels on said shaftscontiguous to said arbor, substantially as described.

8. In a wire-coiling machine, the combination with an arbor in which thewire is coiled, of a bending-roll, a support for said bending-rollcapable of swinging about an axis parallel with the axis of said arbor,a rocking crank-plate, stops for limiting the movement of saidcrank-plate, and a link connecting said crank-plate with saidrollsupport, substantially as described.

9. In a wirescoiling machine, the combination with an arbor on which thewire is coiled, of a post having vertical ways, a block adjustable insaid ways, a bearing for said arbor in said block, bearings in saidblock above and below said arbor-bearing, a pressureroll, and apressure-roll support adapted to be interchangeably held in said upperand lower bearings, substantially as described.

Dated this 15th day of February, 1904.

GEORGE E. BIGELOW. GEORGE II. SCOTT. Witnesses PENELOPE CoMBEaBAorI,RUFUS B. FOWLER.

